book (ry)view: The Troop by Nick Cutter

Everything is going smoothly for scoutmaster Tim Riggs and his troop of Scouts while on their yearly expedition into the Canadian wilderness. This year, they've chosen an island just off the coast of their hometown - all they have to do is get through the weekend without cell phones and living off the land, and then it's back to civilization they go. Of course, nothing is ever that simple in a horror story. One night, an unexpected visitor comes to Tim asking for help. He is emaciated and he is hungry. Against his better judgment, Tim - a doctor - takes the man back to the cabin where he and the boys are staying so he can try to help the man. Unbeknownst the Tim and the boys, they've just invited a biologically engineered nightmare that will pit Tim and the Scouts against the wilderness, an unknown but rapidly spreading contagion, hysteria, and themselves.


This is one of the most frightening, gruesome, and tragic novels I've encountered in some time (excluding most of Stephen King's bibliography, of course). I think what makes this particular story all the more unsettling is that it's something that could theoretically happen. But these terrifying scenes are not what make this book great - no, what makes this book great is the emotion Nick Cutter carves into each of his character's experiences and narratives. While there are a few characters (looking at you, Shelley) you cannot truly ever feel a true connection with beyond wanting them to just go away and make things easier for everyone else, the other characters all experience such raw human emotions - hope, the lack of hope, and fear among them - you can't help but feel sorry for each of them and hope for the best, even though Nick Cutter never really gives you a reason to feel hope for any of them.

There are quite a few scenes that stand out for me. Without giving too much away, among those scenes are: the initial reveal of the contagion in the cabin, Shelley and a kitten (seriously, Shelley is the worst), and Ephraim's hysteria regarding his own fear of contamination (which leads to maybe the most gruesome scene involving Shelley - really, any villain I've ever read - of the novel). 

What I enjoyed most of all about this book is the differing perspectives Nick Cutter provides for the narrative. While much of the story is kept in a quite small and contained with the group of Scouts and Tim, the entire story is punctuated by news articles, lab reports, and court proceedings that take place both before and during the main story on the island. It helps the reader to escape from the group of young teens and their adult leader - who, quite frankly, are not sure what exactly is happening at large. While this admittedly helps the reader to feel the Troop's dread and hopelessness - as while as their tendency to fall into mass hysteria - the slow unveiling of what happened on the island from the perspective of those not on the island (and, indeed, from the perspective of those ultimately responsible for what happened on the island) provides layers to this story.

Part Lord of the Flies - The Troop is one of those rare books that truly surprises you, makes you want to close its pages just for a little reprieve (even though you couldn't possibly do so), and will take a while to leave you.

Add it to your Goodreads by clicking on the book cover above. Happy reading!